


A Matter of Respect

by Tabbyluna



Category: Skylanders (Video Games)
Genre: Drinking, Female Friendship, Gen, Implied Neurodiversity, Splat's here too, Talking, sensory issues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-28
Updated: 2020-12-28
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:08:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,712
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28372914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tabbyluna/pseuds/Tabbyluna
Summary: Nightfall liked her friends, it's just that she wished that sometimes Stormblade would quieten down.
Relationships: Nightfall & Stormblade (Skylanders)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4





	A Matter of Respect

**Author's Note:**

> I'd noticed that a good number of my Nightfall-and-Stormblade-fight fics have Nightfall being in the wrong. Which I think can be quite concerning. So I think I need to balance that out, by writing some more stories where Stormblade is in the wrong, and where Stormblade apologises and learns from her mistakes.

There were many things Nightfall and Stormblade respected about each other. For Nightfall, she admired Stormblade’s willingness to see the good in others, and her skills as a fighter and a navigator. For Stormblade, she had to admit that though she had certainly an unconventional sense of humour, she was never boring to be around. There was always a witty observation, an interesting story to be told whenever she hung out with her. Nightfall was also an excellent submarine captain, warrior, and was one of the most noble and loyal friends Stormblade ever had.

Not to mention, she always looked great. Tall, muscular, with shiny dark skin and large eyes like full moons. Stormblade had always admired the way her hair looked too; luminescent tendrils flowing so gracefully, yet powerfully from behind her. 

She tended to compliment Nightfall. And the longer they stayed friends, the more liberal Stormblade became with those compliments. Admittedly, Nightfall wasn’t quite used to it. Back home, as a kid, no one really saw her as a particularly noteworthy kid. She was however seen as a little odd, always sneaking away to explore the waters outside the towers instead of hanging around indoors like everyone else. 

But hey, it  _ wasn’t  _ a bad thing to be complimented. Not by any means. In turn, she started thinking of things to praise Stormblade for. 

There was a lot to praise her for too. Her skills with her knives. Her prowess as a pilot. The way she kept her purple feathers neat and shiny. The list went on.

But there was one thing which she always did find it difficult to put up with, and she had to admit, it had to do with Stormblade’s cheeriness. 

She knew that it was just who she was. Chipper, plucky, and bright, Stormblade was the ray of sunshine in pretty much every friend group she was in. And in some respects, Nightfall did admire her for those traits. She respected anyone who stuck by their guns and their core values, no matter what was going on around them. And Stormblade’s eternal optimism certainly fitted that description. 

Yet, she didn’t quite know how to best articulate why, but some of it did grate on her slightly. 

The problem wasn’t so much the cheerful platitudes. Perhaps, the problem was that it was more or less  _ endless _ . And it could get  _ loud _ too. Especially during extremely nerve-wracking, high-stakes missions. The two of them frequently did such missions together. Since Superchargers were an elite squadron, plenty of highly intense operations were given to them. As an elite squadron, they were expected to hold their own against threats. During those missions, Stormblade loved trying her best to keep spirits high. It was to boost morale, and it probably did work on some members. Hey, sometimes it even did work on Nightfall herself. But sometimes, Nightfall did wish that Stormblade would keep quiet for a while. If only so that she could have a little space to think and clear her mind.

Nightfall had never really liked loud, sudden noises. She didn’t like sharp sounds. Bangs, crashes, or whistles. One reason why she liked going out to explore back in her youth was because she had a difficult time spending time around others. It wasn’t necessarily their fault. But seated away from everyone, trying to read, she still found it difficult to pay attention. Because all she could hear was just how fast and how loudly everyone was talking. The sharp noises, the laughs without warning or context. For whatever reason, it all just got on her nerves.

And the thing was, she didn’t mind talking one-on-one with another person. Sure, she could be introverted, but a one-on-one conversation was very much something she was comfortable holding. It wasn’t like she was  _ shy  _ or anything. But hearing sharp, fast-paced constant noise, especially noise she had no control over, now that had  _ always  _ been uncomfortable for her.

For the most part, she’d been trying to grin and bear through it. It wasn’t that big a deal, she told herself. Sure, she’d vented to Splat a couple of times about how it did feel a little frustrating to hear cheerful chit chat while she was trying to think, but… well…

Nightfall never really told many in her life this fact about her, but she does deeply value each and every one of her friendships. She grew up not having many close friends to call her own. So the few she had, even though they ended up drifting away in adulthood, she had always been as loyal as anything to them. If they ever had a problem, she would be there to help. Any time they needed a shoulder to cry on or another player in their game, they could always count on her. She carried this attitude into adulthood. Her friends very much meant the world to her.

And well, Stormblade also always seemed rather soft to her. She knew that Stormblade considered her optimism and her perky attitude towards new challenges and tasks as something important to her self-concept and her identity. Mostly because she believed that spreading good cheer and helping others see the bright side of life was something which could always help people. How would she feel if she found out this part of herself, which she considered so important, was actually something that did somewhat annoy her friend?

So, she tried to suck it up. And after long, nerve-wracking missions, when she was finally allowed to walk away from constant sharp noises, she would excuse herself from the afterparty. Usually, she’d head out for a drive, with nothing but the calming sounds of waves combined with the Sea Shadow’s motor humming to be heard.

*****

“And so we loaded everyone onto the rafts. Somehow we managed to fit in the entire town before the volcano erupted!” Said Stormblade. She chuckled with nervous energy, because it had been such a close shave. But mostly, she was excited. Because they managed to save everyone.

Nightfall, Stormblade and Eruptor had just evacuated a whole island before a volcano eruption. Splat had been busy strolling the Perilous Pastures that day, and after all were done with their missions, they agreed to meet up in a bar. Once there, Splat had wanted to know how things turned out for their mission. Especially since on her end, it was quite a boring patrol. Halfway through, Eruptor said that he wasn’t feeling well and headed back to the Academy. Probably because he had one too many drinks. But that left the three girls behind, with Stormblade enthusiastically narrating her story, Splat listening in earnest, and Nightfall hanging back, sipping her beer.

She didn’t usually like crowded bars. Especially not ones with loud music and lots of flashing neon lights. The bar they were in was smaller, and had few patrons. But the sounds of overlapping conversations and glasses clinking together still did get to her. 

Stormblade was in a cheerful mood when she told her story. And when she was cheerful, she got loud. A little shrill at times too, for lack of a better word. It wasn’t necessarily a  _ bad  _ thing she supposed. But a part of her simply got annoyed at her. She’d gotten better both at hiding her annoyances and at tact in more recent times. But Stormblade admittedly still has a long way to go in terms of volume control.

“Wow, that must have been pretty tough,” said Splat. Her eyes were wide, and she hadn’t even taken a sip of her drink the whole time Stormblade was telling the story. All the ice had melted, and the whole drink must have been watered down by now.

“Oh, it totally was. But luckily, I had both Eruptor and Nightfall to back me up! Working together, we all managed to pull through in the end! Isn’t that right, Nightfall?” She asked, her voice perky, but so very  _ sharp _ .

Nightfall nodded. “Yeah, it… it was definitely a tough order. But good thing all of us managed to pull through together in the end.” She sighed. In the background, the conversations kept on happening, and the glasses kept on clinking. All noises which were no big deal for those around her, but all managed to get on her nerves. “I think I’ll take a walk outside. Right now, I need some fresh air.” And some peace and quiet.

When she took a step outside, a light breeze blew. And it felt nice on her moist skin and hair. Closing the door, the sounds of chatter, clinking glasses, and footsteps on the tiled floor muted. And all that could be heard was the softness of the wind, the clashing of the waves in the ocean. The gentle sounds of the evening. Nightfall once again felt her nerves soothed, and her mind settled.

She stuffed her hands into the pocket of her coat, and began to take a stroll around the port town. The bar here had good drinks, and it wasn’t the most crowded, loudest place to go to as far as nightlife in Skylands was concerned. So that was a positive. But after such a stressful day, she didn’t know if she really had the energy to deal with all the noise that came with spending time out in a public place.

She turned over to look at the ocean. Leaning against the wooden railing that prevented people from falling off the walkway, and into the waters below. It was a little wobbly and unstable, but she figured she could keep her balance. With a sigh, she turned over to the corner where she had parked the Sea Shadow, and then looked up towards the sky.

There wasn’t a visible star up there. No doubt due to the nearby city. And Nightfall supposed that it wasn’t that big a deal. The sky by itself was still a very pretty shade of deep dark blue. But, well…

She turned over to look at her beloved vehicle again, and wondered if she should take this opportunity to drive off. Maybe head out a little further away. So that the city lights wouldn’t drown out all the stars in the sky like that. 

One reason why she loved her Sea Shadow, outside of the sheer joy she found fixing it up and driving it fast, was because of where it could take her. Growing up in a tower, more or less sheltered from the world, she was always curious about going outside and seeing what was going on. Once she finally got the ability to go out and see for herself, she took that opportunity by the horns and she never let go.

The first time she drove her vehicle out, it was in the evening. And for the first part of that evening, she spent a good amount of time speeding around, having fun. At some point, she ended up looking up. And before her, stretched out as far as the eye could see, was just this endless sea of stars covering the deep blue sky. Far more grand and magnificent than anything she had previously witnessed from the windows of Fogshadow Tower. She must have spent hours looking up. Just focusing on the glory all around her, lost in its awesome beauty.

Ever since that night, she had fallen in love with the stars. Both the sea and sky held so many mysterious beauties. No wonder why she found herself constantly getting drawn to them, time and time again, in her life.

She sighed, and shook her head. It probably wasn’t a good idea to head out into the Sea Shadow and stargaze now. She had friends waiting in the bar for her, and really all she needed was five minutes away from the noise. Outside, the air was cooling and the silence was welcoming. It was just the getaway she needed, but she knew she needed to head back in soon. Before anyone could get too worried about her.

“Nightfall?” A familiar voice called out from behind her. She turned around, and sure enough, right behind her stood Stormblade and Splat.

“Hey,” Nightfall called out softly to them. Stormblade walked up to her, and leaned against the railing. Splat stayed where she was, hands in her pockets. 

“So…” Splat began, walking up towards the two of them. “Nice evening we have tonight.”

“Indeed.”

“Real nice and quiet. I, well, I can see why you’d prefer it out here,” said Stormblade.

Nightfall turned to look at her, her head tilted to one side.

“Yeah, I uh… I told her about your thing with loud noises,” said Splat, licking her lips. “She wanted to go out here and talk to you more about it.”

Nightfall took a good look at Stormblade’s face. She didn’t appear to be upset at all. Actually, she was kind of… pensive. Or at least the lark was deep in thought and trying to come up with something to say. Nightfall knew the feeling that look implied well. Something she had to train herself in, with regards to social skills, was how to determine what was socially appropriate to say in a given situation. She said quite a number of things straight from her heart in the past, without quite realising how others would take her words. Especially when she was a kid. Figuring out the right words to say at the right time took a bit of thinking on her end.

And based on that look Stormblade had on her own face, she was currently going through that same thinking process too.

“So,” Stormblade began. And then paused. Perhaps she needed a bit more time to phrase her words? “I didn’t know I annoyed you like that…”

Nightfall sighed. “Look, it’s…  _ you _ don’t annoy me. I would like to make that very clear.” She tapped a finger against the railing, contemplating her own phrasing of sentences. “But… I would appreciate it if you had a bit more… volume control I guess. If you would also try to be a bit more focused when we’re doing important tasks too. I get what you bring to the table, and I admire you trying to keep everyone’s spirits up.”

“But you’d occasionally want some peace to focus your mind and not get distracted?” 

Nightfall nodded. “Yeah, that’s basically it.”

Stormblade nodded, then turned to face away from the sea to look at Nightfall. “So, I guess… that means quietening down sometimes… and less cheerleading during the really intense moments.”

“And more focusing and clear communication during those times, yes.” Nightfall nodded. “We need that during high-intensity missions. They’d definitely be very helpful.”

“Hm,” a pause. A moment of silence between all of them. Then, “Nightfall, I’m sorry I never truly noticed your discomfort  _ and _ looked into why you felt that way. I really shouldn’t have assumed anything about you.”

Nightfall raised a hand. “It’s no problem. I didn’t tell you anything, so I really don’t blame you for not doing anything about it.”

“It’s not just that though,” said Stormblade. “As a pilot and Skylander - more importantly, as your friend, I think I should have been more aware of whenever I was causing you discomfort. You may not have actually told me about it, but I should have tried to read the room a little better, and observed how you were taking my attempts at positivity. I apologise that I caused you discomfort, and in the future, I will try my best to make sure you’re more comfortable.”

Splat walked up to her, and placed a hand on her shoulder. “Though in the future, please don’t be ashamed to just tell people about any issues you have with them. We’re all professionals here, and we can certainly compromise.”

Nightfall placed her hand on top of Splat’s, then she wrapped an arm around Stormblade. Slowly, the three of them came together for a somewhat awkward, yet pleasant (in its own weird way) hug. “I’ll be sure to keep that in mind,” whispered Nightfall to the two of them. “Now, are you guys ready to head back to the Academy? Because I’m tired.”

And so the three of them walked back to their vehicles, side by side.

**Author's Note:**

> Ah, I hope I did well for this one. This could quite possibly be my last Skylanders fic this crazy year, as well as the last Skylanders fic I write before I turn 18. It's crazy, thinking about how long I'd been doing this. Like, wow.


End file.
